Chapter 685: A disturbing letter

It was only when they got back upstairs and the confused Ember and Sage realised they’d disappeared into a secret chamber, that Cass remembered there was another letter he needed to read.

He let Gideon and Sage discuss the cleaning, lighting and other things that would be needed to make that almost dungeon a welcoming space while he stared at the letter on his desk like it was a fly he didn’t want to deal with.

"Cass? What’s wrong?" Of course, Lucian noticed that something was off with Cass almost immediately, stepping away from the others to place a warm hand on Cass’ lower back as he came to stand next to him. They were both staring at his desk, Lucain scanning it to find the offending article, while Cass sighed.

He shifted on his feet, crossing his arms as he stared at the battered thing. If it wasn’t for the scrawling script on it that was as familiar as it was foreign, Cass would have never touched it.

Unlike Christopher’s letter, which had been pristine in its display, this one had clearly taken a beating on the way here. It looked like it had almost been ripped to shreds, rained on, and many other kinds of abuses, yet it was in one piece.

No doubt that was due to the favourtism that Fiona benefited from. That wasn’t a mean remark, just the plain truth.

"We also got a letter from Fiona." Cass admitted. He didn’t look at Lucian, and then didn’t need to as a low rumble started from his lips.

"Oh? What did she say?" He asked, already sounding annoyed. Cass shrugged.

"Don’t know. I haven’t looked at it yet." Cass admitted. "I opened Christopher’s letter first and then got so worked up I forgot about it until now." Lucian remained quiet for a moment, the two of them listening to the others chat behind them.

"Well, we should open it. Despite everything, I would hate to read about her being in trouble." Lucian grumbled. He was more honest then Cass was, that was for sure, and Cass let out a sigh. He was right, after all, and so Cass reached for the letter and his letter opener.

Sliding the blade into the thin paper, Cass cut it open and placed it to the side as he pulled the letter out.

It was a thick one, surprisingly thick for how damaged the exterior was. When Cass unfolded the letter, another, smaller letter fell out and it was addressed to Edgar.

Cass had a feeling he knew who made that one.

"Should I give it to him?" Lucian asked softly, his hands catching the falling letter before it hit the floor, his lips brushing against Cass’ ear. So far, the other two were distracted with Ember and Sage and plotting how to make the space below here livable. They hadn’t caught on to what Cass and Lucian were doing yet.

"We should." Cass begrudgingly admitted. "I wouldn’t want anyone to hold it back from me, and you wouldn’t either. Not even for a second." Cass told him and Lucian huffed.

"You’re better than me, Cassy Baby." Lucian muttered before he turned. "Edgar, you’ve got a letter." Lucian told him. Cass didn’t turn to see Edgar’s expression and only heard his confused response. Cass felt him approach and instead of focusing on him, he turned his attention to the letter.

It was hastily scrawled, the ink bleeding in quite a few spots so it was hard to read at certain points, but Cass was able to get the gist of what was being said. As he read, his stomach dropped, and Cass realised that while they had joked about it, the worst had already come to pass.

Fiona and Ava had indeed dealt with a dungeon on their own, with a ragtag group of adventures, and had nearly lost their lives.

Fiona assured Cass and the others that they were fine. The dungeon wasn’t as dangerous as some of the ones they had braved together, but the adventures had turned on them and that had almost been their downfall. If it wasn’t for Fiona’s quick thinking, she might not have been able to pen this letter at all.

Cass’ throat was tight as he read it, his hands shaking as he flipped over the paper and read more about her struggles and how casually she spoke of them. How things had gotten easier before they had gotten harder, how Ava had nearly lost her arm in the dungeon, how Fiona and Ava had come into danger in only the way two solo girls traveling could.

How they had been chased out of a city because someone thought they were lying and weren’t actually the hero and saintess.

Cass had wanted them to suffer, but not like this. He had wanted-he had wanted emotional turmoil while they sat in warm rooms and slept in soft beds. They were, at the end of the day, a part of the hero party. It was why it had stung so much when they had fled without consulting them or asking for help.

"Oh fuck." Cass whispered, getting emotional as he read the letter. A large part of him wanted to send Lucian off right this moment to go find them. Get them home safe. Cass had his contacts, had a vague idea of where they were even without Fiona telling him in the letter. All it would take was him sending out the question and a chain would come back with the right answer.

But he also knew that they would hate that, the same way that Cass would if he was in their position.

"What’s wrong?" Lucian asked, leaning in. "Are they okay?" He asked and Cass could only numbly shake his head.

"No. They closed a dungeon and, fuck, Ava almost lost her arm."

"What?!" Gideon was horrified, stopping his conversation while he moved to be with Cass and Lucian. Edgar was silent, reading over the letter that Ava had sent him silently. When Cass raised his head and glanced at the man, his eyes were watering. It was clear that Ava had written to him and had told him what was going on as well.

"They were almost assaulted as well." Cass whispered and felt Gideon and Lucian freeze. The heat in the room spiked, Lucian’s anger flaring suddenly and Cass couldn’t even tell him to calm down. Cass was angry too.

"Are they alright now?" Gideon choked out, his hands fisted at his side tightly. Despite everything, they shared the same opinions as Cass. These were people they cared about, would always care about. There was no way that they were going to be okay if something terrible happened to them while they were away from them.

"It sounds like it. Fiona told me not to worry, but also said she would understand if we did. She did ask for some money, which of course I’m going to give her. I should tell her about the plan. Maybe then they can make their way back to the kingdom. Fuck. They’d be safer here than on the road." Cass mumbled. "Judged, but safe. I wouldn’t let a fucking noble try a damn thing."

"Ava doesn’t want that." Edgar rasped. He was crying, sniffing silently as he raised his eyes. God, he was too pretty even as he was distraught. "She’s doing okay. She says that Fiona isn’t getting enough rest and that they gutted two men who tried to harm them. She was shaken for a while, but it was also enlightening. She was horrified that other people live like this, and have to worry like she is. She told me to tell you not to rush to them and that she wanted to spend at least another month alone with Fiona like this. They’re planning to blow up a bandit camp that’s been trafficking women. She knows that demons are involved and the dungeon they cleared was on the way to it."

Fiona did not mention that in her letter, and probably because of the low, dangerous growl that came from Lucian.

"What?" He demanded and Edgar sighed softly, wiping at his eyes. Gideon reached over, placing his hand on his lower back comfortingly even as his jaw clenched.

"Ava said that the gods asked her to do this. That while Cass and Fiona were dealing with the greater evil that consumes all, the gods asked her to help out with the ’smaller’ evils." Edgar said. Lucian spun, growling and running his hands through his hair in frustration.

"These women infuriate me." He muttered and Cass almost wanted to laugh.

They had always been like this, had they not? How many times had quests been sidelined because Ava and Fiona had seen an injustice and had needed to correct it? They were heroes, the kind of heroes that the world needed. Cass was just the hero that the gods needed.

Cass let out a soft chuckle, forcing the others to look at him in confusion and Cass couldn’t help himself.

"Well, if they’re going to do this, we should support them as best as we can. Gideon, who do you think would be the best to send their way from our knights? Or should we hire some mercenaries to join them that you’ve worked with before?" Cass asked and watched as Gideon’s eyes widened and he nodded.

"Mercenaries. They’ll get to them faster and will have more hands-on experience. Do you know what region they’re in?" He asked and Cass nodded.

"I have people tailing them." He told him and Lucian laughed.

"Of course you do." It should have sounded snarky, but he seemed sincere. "But, if you do, how did this happen?" That was a startling, and alarming question. He was right. How was this allowed to happen if he had people tailing them?

"I’ll have to check in and see if they are still trailing them." Cass muttered. "There is a chance someone else might have offered them a better deal." Edgar scoffed.

"Who could offer a better deal than you?" He asked and Cass chuckled.

"Demons are known for being good at giving people what they want, Edgar." Cass reminded him. Edgar scoffed.

"You are a demon." Edgar said. "By that logic, they are getting the best of both worlds. However, humans are vulnerable to folly, so there is a chance for anything to happen." Edgar muttered. Gideon nodded sagely.

"Agreed." Gideon muttered. "Did Fiona mention where they were?" He asked and Cass just handed the letter over to him. Lucian was still grumbling and groaning while Gideon read over the letter, and Edgar took a moment to go sit down. He was shaking, clearly upset over what he’d read. He hadn’t offered up Ava’s letter to anyone yet.

"I have some people in this area." Gideon murmured. "I’ll have to ask either you or Eddie to help me reach out to them." Gideon asked and both mages nodded.

"It’s no problem." Cass murmured, and it wasn’t. Not if it meant that they could be just a little bit more safe.